Weapon of Mass Destruction
by Fatal Errors
Summary: To defeat Sephiroth, one must find the ultimate weapon... PG13 for some cursing, possible sexual situations later on. AU, with original characters. ON PERMANENT HIATUS.


Disclaimer: I wish I owned FFVII but I don't. Sigh.  
  
A/N: I'm not very good at this fanfic stuff, but I try anyways. Please r + r! Constructive criticism welcome, flames are ignored.  
  
Weapon of Mass Destruction: Love  
  
Chapter I: Heartfelt Emotions  
  
Tifa ran down the steps, trying not to look at the crimson stains on the floor and walls. A thick, metallic odor filled the room, and she felt her stomach clench tightly. She was scared. Scared of Sephiroth. Scared of Jenova. Scared of ShinRa. She was scared, plain and simple. But that was okay. Fear was good. When Tifa was afraid she could be very stubborn, and it was time to exercise that trait. She slid to a halt on the blood-stained marble, and tried to catch her breath. When the others noticed that she was suddenly silent they turned, weapons ready and prepared for the worst.  
  
All they saw was Tifa, looking exhausted but oddly determined. "You guys go on ahead; I'm waiting here for Cloud." she declared. She stood in the middle of the doorway, hands placed on her curvy hips, shoulders squared.  
  
"Hell motherfucker no! Yer comin with us!" exclaimed Barrett, gun-arm cocked and his eyes flashing.  
  
"No, I'm not. Now go." Softening slightly at the sight of the big man with troubled eyes she added softly, "I'll be fine Barrett, promise."  
  
The fierce determination in her eyes surprised him. She wasn't moving, no matter what he said. Sighing, Barrett turned to face Red XIII and Aeris. "Let's go! C'mon, move it!"  
  
Red XIII and Aeris ran down the stairs. Barrett started after them, but when he reached the top of the steps, he hesitated. "You take care of yo'self, for Marlene's sake," he called back. The concerned tone of his voice caught her off guard, but before she could respond he disappeared from her view.  
  
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"Is that all you've got? Former SOLDIER, First Class? Ha!" Rufus exclaimed as Cloud's sword thrust bounced off his barrier, leaving him unharmed. Lifting his shotgun, Rufus leveled the barrel at Cloud's head and smiled cruelly. "Say good-bye, Clod!"  
  
Suddenly, a bright flash of light blinded Rufus. As his vision returned, he realized the light was caused by the shattering of the barrier, which was falling to pieces around him. The sight of the dematerializing barrier was strangely beautiful, and it glittered in the sun's rays. Rufus's heart raced at the brilliance of the fading magic, realizing full well that this might be the last thing he ever saw. Blinking frantically to clear his vision he looked down, only to see the body of his familiar in a pool of its own blood.  
  
Cloud smiled to himself. He was going to be victorious. This arrogant bastard, Rufus, was going to pay for the sins of his father, and oh, how Cloud was going to enjoy that. Throwing his sword over his shoulder he decided that he would wait to kill Rufus. He wasn't a coward. He would wait until the man could look him in the eyes, to see his death coming towards him.  
  
Defeat was apparent in Rufus's eyes, causing Cloud's smile to deepen. Returning to battle-stance, he stated "My name is Cloud. And now it's your turn to say good-bye."  
  
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Tifa stood in the doorway leading to the stairs breathing through her mouth in an attempt to keep the sharp smell of blood from overtaking her senses. Her heart was pounding and her thoughts were racing, as she hoped against hope that her blood wouldn't add to the stains on the floor.  
  
The sound of blood rushing in her ears nearly blocked out the sound of muffled footsteps on the carpet. But fear had made her senses sharper and her fingers flexed and tensed in their battle gloves.  
  
Whirling around to face a new threat she was greeted by a familiar arrogant half-smile, a smile that she lived for. Cloud stood there, a little worse for wear, but very much alive.  
  
"Rufus?" She started but was abruptly cut off by a derisive snort.  
  
"Prick got away. What a coward." He took a deep breath and his smile faded. "I found something weird though, next to Sephiroth's sword."  
  
"Well, lets get out of here. Everyone is waiting. I'm so happy that you're okay!"  
  
"Yeah, it's good to see you too." His brows furrowed and his eyes softened. "Is Aeris okay?"  
  
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After the grueling trek to Kalm, the companions lounged around their hotel room listening to Cloud recount his tale of Sephiroth's last known days in Nibelheim. However, his tale ground to a halt because of the obvious gaps in his memory, confusing everyone present especially himself. An uncomfortable silence fell over them. In an effort to break the stillness and tension Tifa cleared her throat and turned to face Cloud.  
  
"Hey, Cloud, didn't you say you found something weird back in the ShinRa tower? Near Sephiroth's sword?"  
  
The puzzlement in Cloud's eyes faded, and he nodded. "Yeah, a piece of glass or something. It looked out of place because I didn't find any other glass shards." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a glittering object.  
  
Aeris jumped up from the bed and walked over to get a closer look. Holding out her palm, Cloud gently dropped the object into her waiting hands. Staring intently at the glittering fragment in her hand she slowly shook her head.  
  
"No - its not glass. It's a sliver of materia. Very strange though, because I don't think it has magic."  
  
"Then if it ain't got no magic, whas it do?" Growled Barrett. "Whas the point of havin' materia if it don't do nuthin?"  
  
"Well, it does have magic. Just not the way we think of magic. I think," she hesitated "I think it may be Heart materia."  
  
Red XIII's head shot up. "Heart materia? My grandfather told me about that. It's very rare." Gazing into Aeris's palm he continued, "It looks so plain."  
  
Tifa took the shard of materia from Aeris's palm. Holding it up into the sunlight she asked, "What exactly is Heart materia?"  
  
Aeris sighed and shook her head. "Its hard to explain. It's a rare materia that has strange properties. For one, after it fully forms no polishing or shaping is necessary because it forms a perfect circle. As for its magic - well, it glows as long as its owner is alive. This materia is connected, in some way, to the beating of the possessors' heart."  
  
Tifa nodded. "So this is Sephiroth's Heart materia. That's why its glittering of course. But what good is it?"  
  
Closing her eyes, Aeris took a deep breath and smiled. "Like calls to like of course. If you invoke the latent energy of this shard, it will call out to reunite with the main part. We can use this to track him!"  
  
Slowly, the realization of what they had in their grasp dawned on them.  
  
Grinning, Cloud finally spoke up. "So lets use it!"  
  
Taking the shard from Tifa's hand and cupping it in her own Aeris closed her eyes and began to pray. A gentle glow lit up her fingers but immediately started to fade, prompting Aeris to sigh and shrug her shoulders.  
  
"Guess I was wrong. Maybe I don't have enough of the materia - but whatever it is, the shard isn't responding."  
  
Suddenly, an intense light exploded from the shard blinding everyone in the room. Yet, as quickly as the light had appeared it faded, leaving bright spots in everyone's eyes.  
  
Gasping for breath, Aeris raised her head and cried triumphantly, "I know where he is! Lets go!"  
  
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Another A/N: Sorry to anyone who is reading this story, because I didn't really update it. I'm always unhappy with what I write, so I'm constantly editing my work. I'm also not sure if this story is good enough to continue, so if anyone likes it please, please, please review it!!! Please! Tell me if anything needs work. 


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